About Us

Shot of Prevention is a community blog where individuals, parents, medical professionals and others can gather to discuss current events regarding immunizations. Over the years we have heard many stories from parents, doctors and advocates about how confusing and frustrating it can be to find good information about vaccines and vaccine safety on the Internet. This inspired us to introduce a resource where different voices can come together to share their perspectives and personal stories. We hope you will find the resource to be beneficial, and we hope you will engage in these important conversations with us!

Christine Vara, Lead Contributor

Christine Vara began partnering with Every Child By Two in 2010 and has since become the lead contributor at Shot of Prevention. Her dynamic background provides a unique parent’s perspective to the blog’s ongoing discussion of immunizations, the science behind them and the choices that parents make to protect their children from preventable diseases. As a dedicated mother to five children and wife to a military husband, Christine has often found herself perplexed by the overwhelmingly clinical nature of information about immunization. Like any mom, she understands that the choices she and her husband make about their family’s health will impact not only the two of them, but also the lives of their children. In an effort to better understand the facts about vaccine safety and preventable disease, Christine is embarking on a journey where she will chronicle her thoughts and concerns as a mother, as well as open up dialogue about these important topics on Shot of Prevention. She invites you to join her on this journey and participate in this meaningful, insightful discussion.

Amy Pisani has served as the Executive Director of Every Child By Two (ECBT) since 1998. ECBT is an organization founded by Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter and Former First Lady of Arkansas Betty Bumpers in 1991 to ensure the timely immunizations of all children. Mrs. Carter and Mrs. Bumpers started ECBT to ensure that all kids were protected from vaccine-preventable diseases in response to one of the largest measles outbreaks in recent history. Most recently, ECBT launched the Vaccinate Your Baby campaign with Amanda Peet in 2008 in order to encourage parents to get the facts about immunizations, in response to Hib, whooping cough and measles outbreaks that were cropping up around the country. As a mother of two boys and foster parent to a teenage girl, Amy has first-hand experiences with vaccines and questions parents have about their safety, efficacy and necessity.

Danielle Romaguera is a mother of three and an immunization advocate. After losing her daughter Brie to pertussis (whooping cough) when she was only 52 days old, Danielle decided she wanted to educate others on the importance of protecting children from vaccine-preventable diseases. Danielle feels strongly about the need to promote timely immunization because of her personal experience, and has spoken out on this issue to Congress, to the media, and by being involved in the Vaccinate Your Baby campaign. To read Brie’s story, please visit: http://www.vaccinateyourbaby.org/why/victims.cfm